Friendships
by Saori Runa Dempsey
Summary: Sometimes all you need is a friend to help you confess the feelings you have for someone. Kenyako and Takari fans: DEFINITE stop for you! Dedicated to Sailor Hope and Hikari4Takeru


Ken/Kari, Yolei/TK FRIENDSHIP fic. FRIENDSHIP! This is NOT a KENKARI or MIYAKERU! Has KENYAKO and TAKARI.  
  
Dedication:   
  
To Sailor Hope. Thanks for being a great reviewer and all the compliments on my stories!   
  
And  
  
Hikari4Takeru - Thanks for ALL the help on my stories!  
  
Special thanks to Mimi-Chan and Cherry-Chan! Thanks SO much for helping me write the ending! You were BIG helps!  
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Kari looked worried as Ken walked away from the group. He had been acting very strangely the past few weeks and she was curious to know why. He didn't punish himself anymore for being the emperor or Sam's death so what could it be?  
"I'm gonna head home. See you all tomorrow" Kari called before rushing off in the direction Ken went. TK stared off after her, not noticing Yolei who came up behind him.  
"Earth to TK! Come in TK!" she yelled in his ear. Yolei laughed hysterically as TK jumped off the ground, landing onto the pavement flat on his butt.  
"What did you do that for?" he groaned, rubbing his now sore bottom.  
"TK, come with me, we need to talk" Yolei said. TK waved a bye to Cody and Davis before Yolei dragged him towards the park. Once there, she sat him down on a bench and stood in front of him with an annoyed face.  
"All right Takaishi, spill. Why haven't you done anything yet?" she asked. As she expected, TK looked at her with a confused expression.  
"What do you mean Yolei?" he asked. Yolei flicked him in the forehead with her fingers, causing him to yelp.  
"Ow!" He opened his mouth to speak stopped when he saw Yolei glaring daggers at him.  
"You know what I mean! When are you going to ask Kari out? You stare at her like no tomorrow yet you make no move. Why in heaven's sake's haven't you asked her out?" she exclaimed. TK blinked, was he REALLY that obvious? ((TAKARI fans: YES!!))   
"Well...I...uh..." he stuttered, not knowing what to say. Matt had asked him the same thing but he had managed to escape answering. Now he was in a bind. Yolei was very persistent and wouldn't stop asking until she got an answer that satisfied her.  
"I'm waiting. We have all day to sit here until you tell me" she said with a stern look. TK sighed in defeat, no use trying to hide it from Yolei.  
  
Meanwhile...  
  
Kari followed Ken off the bus, making sure to stay a fair distance from him. She hid behind some bleachers as they entered the park, Ken heading towards the soccer field. He tossed his backpack near the bleachers, taking out his soccer ball before heading onto the field. Kari watched as Ken dribbled the ball up and down the field, shooting goal after goal into the nets. He failed to notice her come out from hiding and sit on the bottom row, watching him. It wasn't until he kicked the ball into the net and bent over panting did he notice her, clapping on the sides.  
"Nice shots." she commented. Ken walked over to her, taking the water bottle she took out of his backpack from her hands. After a big gulp of cool water, he turned to her with a questioning look.  
"What are you doing here?" he asked.   
"I noticed you've been acting weird for the past few weeks so I followed you so I could find out why" she said. She had a faint idea now of what was wrong but she wanted to confirm her thoughts.  
"Nothings wrong. I don't know what your talking about." he said, slinging his backpack over his shoulders. He began walking down the road towards his house, Kari right behind him. When Ken began picking up the pace, she decided to take a leap of fate.  
"Does it have to do with Yolei?" she called out. Ken froze in his tracks, causing Kari to grin. She ran up to him, looking at his now expressionless face.  
"It is isn't it?" she asked quietly. Ken looked at her, his blue eyes showing a bit of nervousness.  
"Do you want to come to my house? We can talk more there. I don't want any reporters or anything posting my private life in the papers." he said. Reporters were always around, trying to find out something juicy about Ken's life. His romantic life was perfect for them to exploit. Kari nodded, continuing their walk to Ken's.  
  
Back in Odaiba...  
  
"I kind of think Kari likes someone else...I don't want to ruin our friendship by telling her I like her more then a friend." TK said. Yolei looked at him in disbelief.  
"What in god's name makes you think she likes someone else? Better yet, WHO do you think she likes?" she asked. If TK said who she thought he was going to say, the boy was either in denial or completely clue less.  
"Well, Davis." he said. His eyebrow quirked as Yolei collapsed in a fit of laughter.  
"DAVIS?! DORKUS?!" she gasped in between laughs. TK nodded, not knowing what was so funny.  
"Yeah, Davis. I mean, she flirts with me to make him jealous, so I thought she liked him and was playing hard to get." he said. Yolei laughed harder at this, clutching her stomach. Now TK thought she was going crazy. It took a good 10 minutes for Yolei too finally calm down.  
"TK, come to my house. I have a lot of things I need to tell you" she said. TK shrugged, grabbing his backpack and standing. They made their way towards Yolei's, TK wondering what she drank recently.  
  
Ichijouji's...  
  
Ken walked into his apartment with Kari, dropping their bags near the front door.  
"Hi mom. You remember Kari right?" he asked. His mother nodded, smiling happily.  
"Of course I do. What brings you here dear?" she asked.  
"Oh just dropping by. I needed to talk to Ken about something." Kari said with a nervous smile. She hoped his mom wouldn't think something's wrong and start worrying.  
"OK, well I have to go to work so be good kids! Bye Ken dear" she said before scampering out the door. Ken and Kari sat down in the living room, enjoying a somewhat comfortable silence.  
"So spill Ken. What's wrong?" Kari finally said. Ken sighed, maybe telling someone would feel better.  
"You see, I like Yolei...but I don't know how she would react if I tell her. I don't know if I could handle it if she rejected me." Kari's jaw fell open in shock. THAT'S what he'd been worrying about?!  
"Ken, Ken, Ken....that I can assure, you don't need to worry about rejection." Ken raised an eyebrow.  
"Why's that?" Kari sighed, she knew he was going to ask why.  
"Well, there are cases like mine and cases like yours. In your predicament, you are afraid, even though you don't have to be." Kari said.  
"What about 'your case'?" he asked. Kari wasn't going to get off the topic this easily.  
"My case...well...my case is a lot harder. Mine risks the chance of losing a best friend forever." she said.  
"Kari, I've only known all of you digidestined for a year or so. I can tell you right now, from what I've seen, TK would never not be your best friend. He's practically your servant." Ken said. It was unbelievable to him how they could have been so blind.  
  
"Come on Ken" Kari said as she grabbed his wrist, slipping her shoes on. Ken slipped his own on, shutting the door before Kari dragged him down the street.  
"Where are we going?" he asked as they boarded a bus. After sitting down, Kari let go of his wrist, catching her breath from all the running.  
"To Yolei's" she said. Ken groaned, maybe it would have been better to not tell anyone.  
  
Yolei's...  
  
Yolei and TK sat in the Inoue's living room, listening to the silence.  
"OK TK, as I was saying before, she does NOT like Davis. That's an insult to any girl to like him." Yolei said.  
"That's a bit harsh Yolei, but if she doesn't like Davis then who?" he asked. She didn't flirt with anyone else that he knew of. Yolei sighed in annoyance, banging her head on the coffee table.  
"TK have you listened to yourself talk. I KNOW you know who she likes! You're denying it!" she said. It was REALLY getting annoying now.  
"All right all right Yolei, calm down. But, oh I dunno. I'm just afraid it won't work out and we won't be the best friends we are now. Her friendship is the only one that has lasted over the years and it's special to me." he said. He was well aware she liked him. Unfortunately, he wasn't born with the "Ishida Charm" so asking girls' out was hard. He sighed in relief as the doorbell interrupted their conversation.  
"My brothers' getting it, now as I was-"   
"It's for you Yolei, some friends' of yours." her brother said before going back to his room. Yolie blinked when she saw Ken come in, Kari pushing him.  
"Hi Yolei! Ken here wanted to stop by and talk to you!" Kari said.   
"Hey Kari" TK said nervously. Kari turned towards him, blushing a faint pink.  
"Hey TK. Can I talk to you for a minute?" she asked. Kari looked at him, wondering why he turned bright red.  
"Sure!" he said. The two were out of the apartment before Ken or Yolei could say a word.  
"Well...umm..." Ken stuttered. He didn't know where to begin. Yolei looked at him with concern evident in her eyes.   
"Are you okay Ken?"  
"Y-yeah I'm great," He stuttered, casting his eyes to the ground.   
"I'm just perfect." He turned away from her slightly, not sure just how he could possibly tell her his feelings.  
"Ken please quit hiding from me. I know something is on your mind, come on tell me, please?" She spoke in a soft voice that surprised Ken. Never before had he heard so much caring in Yolei's voice and when he finally racked up the courage to look at her, he felt as though his heart stopped. The last rays from the setting sun filtered in through the window casting it's colors into the room and shining on Yolei's face and hair. Her eyes shone with so much concern, all of Ken's doubts seemed to disappear. It didn't matter what happened, he had to tell her.  
"Yolei, the thing is...is that I...like you. I get this feeling when I'm around you." Ken said softly, taking a step closer to her.  
"It's like all the evil things I did in the past vanished and...I don't know...I think it goes beyond liking you. I think...no...I know now. I l...love you." he said. A great weight lifted off his heart as he let it all out. Now all he had to wait for was her reply. Yolei just blinked a few times in shock. She had expected him to say many things but nothing like this. A warm blush rose on her cheeks, for once she didn't know what to say. After a few seconds of silence, Yolei tried thinking of the right words to say, but nothing seemed to come to her, until she looked in his eyes. Suddenly it made sense, the whole idea of being with him just felt right, it was being without him that didn't.   
"Ken," She said softly, his gaze never leaving her face.   
"I love you too!" She cried out as she threw herself into his arms. He was shocked at first, for the feeling of her so close to him was unreal. He relaxed though and kept her close to him deliciously overwhelmed by the rush or warmth that filled his soul.   
"You should have told me sooner." She lectured.   
"You've had me worried for awhile you know." She cast a sweet smile up at him to show she was teasing and in return, he smiled back. Her smile to him was that of an angel and he could no longer restrain himself as leaned in and kissed her softly. His lips felt soft and sweet on her lips as Yolei kissed him back, letting herself get absorbed into the moment. One of her hands rested on his chest and she could feel his heart beating fast just as hers was. When they pulled away, they stayed locked in each other's arms just gazing into each other's eyes. Yolei couldn't help but wonder just how she had ever lived without him.  
  
Meanwhile...  
  
"How do you think it's going?" Kari asked as they walked down the road. They had no planned destination, just walking as the sun set over the horizon. Kari yawned slightly, attracting TK's attention. It had been a hard day and she was kind of tired.  
"I dunno. Are you tired Kari?" TK asked.   
"A little bit." she said with another yawn. TK smiled, wrapping his left arm around her, pulling her closer. Kari smiled, resting her head onto his broad shoulder.  
"Wow, the sunsets really beautiful." Kari said. TK nodded absentmindedly. It was a beautiful reddish color now, similar to Kari's eyes.  
"Hey Kari, come this way" TK said, walking towards the park. He led her through a forest that was next to the park, beautiful flowers on all the trees. The sun was slowly disappearing as they arrived at a beautiful clearing. The grass was tall, flowers all around the grounds surface. In the middle was a small rivulet with crystal clear water running through. Looking up from the small creek, you could see a clear view of the sun and some stray butterflies dancing around. Kari looked around in awe. It was beautiful.  
"This place is gorgeous TK, how did you know about it?" she asked, turning to the blonde boy. A warm blush crept up his cheeks, causing the brunette to giggle.  
"Well, Sora had told me about this place when we were in the digital world once. I had been feeling lonely then and she said this was where she went when she was lonely to think. I came here one day and thought it was a great place. So I kept coming back" he said. He watched silently as Kari squatted down on the side of the creek, placing her small hand into the clear water. She was positioned in a way that the sun cast a shadow over her. TK looked at her with his heart beating faster. She was an unseen beauty, wanted by many guys. He knew that, yet why was his mind stopping him from asking her before it was too late? Pushing back the voice in his mind, he walked up to her, clearing his throat.  
"Kari, I...I want to tell you something." he said. Kari turned her head to him, crimson looking into ocean blue.  
"I...I want to say that...I'm tired of lying to myself, and you." he said. Kari looked at him oddly.  
"What do you mean TK?"  
"I mean the times when you asked me what I meant that day you were kidnapped. I always said 'just stuff' or made an excuse to get away. What I meant that day was I love you too much to let anyone hurt you. Not like, love." he said. Kari looked at him with her mouth agape in shock. Tears built up in her crimson eyes, happy or sad TK didn't know. His mind was so clouded, TK didn't know what to think as Kari hugged him tightly, her arms tight around his neck. Feelings were registered, as they looked eye to eye, heads drawing closer.  
"I love you too TK, I always have" Kari whispered softly before their lip joined in a love filled kiss, the now black sky twinkling with bright stars.  
  
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DONE! R & R! NO FLAMES! 


End file.
